


Loved You Then: The Domestic Meme- Steve and Tony

by thepretender501



Category: Marvel Avengers Movies Universe, The Avengers (2012)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-07-08
Updated: 2012-07-08
Packaged: 2017-11-09 11:30:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,437
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/454957
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thepretender501/pseuds/thepretender501
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Steve and Tony shared a bed even before they started dating.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Loved You Then: The Domestic Meme- Steve and Tony

**Author's Note:**

> Very special thanks to the brilliant and lovely dears Curiouslyfic and blossoms_dreams for betaing. ILU both <3

**Who’s the big spoon/ little spoon?**

Tony is the little spoon. Steve and Tony shared a bed even before they started dating. Steve rarely slept; it was like he feared not waking up for another 60 or 70 years, which made sense. Tony forgot to sleep if he wasn’t reminded to do so. He’d get lost in a project and be up for days before crashing in the lab. Cap sat up late with him in the lab one night and casually reminded Tony of sleep. Tony invited Steve to his bed, ignoring the scandalized expression on Steve’s face. “I have a large bed and I rarely use it. I promise I won’t molest you.” 

They lay in Tony’s bed. Tony on one side, Steve on the other, maybe it was the glow of the arc reactor a faint comforting light for Steve or the presence of a peaceful Steve that calmed Tony’s ever wandering mind but they both slept soundly.

By morning Tony had curled into the spaces where Steve’s body ended and Steve would have at least one arm or leg on top of Tony. 

As a couple, every night in the dark Tony will curl up next to Steve and Steve will usually figure out the rest. Steve will wrap his arms around Tony or run his fingers through Tony’s hair. It happens when they fall asleep on the couch in front of old movies and sometimes the others tease them about it. Steve gets embarrassed but Tony doesn’t really mind. Tony isn’t sure why he likes being wrapped up in Steve’s arms. It’s his favorite place though. 

**What is their favourite non-sexual activity?**

Steve likes art. He likes painting the most and he’s gotten rather good with oil paints. He paints scenes from the bits of New York he remembers from before. He fills in those memories by including the oldest buildings still standing in the city. He’s recently learned a new technique for painting raindrops and now most of his artwork features New York City in the rain. Tony frames Steve’s artwork and hangs it up all over the lab. He even buys Steve a paint set and issues Steve a workspace in his lab. He buys water based paints and colored pencils but they are professional tools and ridiculously expensive so Steve plans to learn to use those too. Steve doesn’t complain because Tony noticing things if not paying significant attention to details is a pretty big deal.

 

Tony likes creating: engines, tools, reinventing the wheel. If he imagines it can work more efficiently Tony doesn’t understand why it shouldn’t. When he’s in the middle of a project he doesn’t keep track of minutes, hours, days. Tony would prefer Steve not to feel abandoned when Tony wakes up from his productivity coma. Steve didn’t get it at first so Tony gave him an open invitation to the lab. Now Tony enjoys having Steve in the room with him, even when he’s hard at work. It’s a little better than talking to JARVIS or Dumm-E. Steve usually doesn’t get it when Tony talks math and physics and mechanics but it’s always pleasant to have Steve around when the science turns Tony on. Oh, but this is about the non-sexual activities... 

**Who uses all the hot water in the morning?**

Steve. It’s not that Steve can’t take a quick shower. It’s just that he doesn’t have to. Not anymore. Most mornings Steve will wake earlier than Tony and he’ll stand in the shower washing and rewashing. He likes the warmth and convenience of Tony’s shower. It’s a ridiculous shower, really, convoluted and extravagant with jets of water propelling from everywhere. Steve can turn on as many or as few jet streams as he wants. Some days he’s still in the shower when Tony wakes up and Tony just joins him. Those are his favorite days. 

Tony is never long in the shower. Unless he’s showering with Steve, that is. Tony gets bored easily and the shower and the toilet have to be the dullest locations in the world. He’s in and out in less than 10 minutes. Sometimes he teases Steve about the amount of water Steve uses. Steve blushes and Tony kisses his cheek, then and makes him blush harder when Clint makes a loud whooping sound. 

**What do they order from takeout?**

If it’s Tony ordering he’ll pick something he’s never had before. Something that JARVIS searches on Zagat. The group also lets Tony order when they’re all too exhausted from another impossible mission to even think clearly. Usually, they just order pizza from Moe’s because that’s the only thing open at 4 a.m. The food is terrible but the delirious, adrenaline and fear fuelled conversation after facing certain death again and somehow surviving, that’s excellent. 

When Steve orders he picks the Shake Shack, every time. He calls it in but always drags Tony with him to pick it up. Sometimes it’s too much for two people to carry and Bruce has to tag along. Steve gets a malt shake, a hamburger and French fries. He gets this faraway look in his eyes sometimes when he’s sipping his shake. Like he’s remembering a time and place that’s better than here. It makes Tony feel sad for some reason. 

**What is the most trivial thing they fight over?**

Steve’s bike. Tony is itching to get his hands on it. He wants to tinker with things and make changes. “It will be an improvement. Trust me,” Tony says.

“It doesn’t need to be improved. It’s perfect now,” Steve says.

Every time Steve takes it out and asks if Tony wants to ride Tony flat out refuses. Steve finds a helmet on his bike every once in a while; a fancy helmet that probably has ridiculously over-complicated tech inside. Next to the helmet Steve finds notes saying ‘I worry about you.’ Or ‘this bike isn’t safe, let me fix it.’

It’s irritating even though Steve gets that Tony is probably genuinely worried his bike is the one big thing that he was able to salvage from his past. Imagining it all high tech and super—whatever-- makes him feel like he’s being crushed. Tony doesn’t push it often, probably for that reason. He does wear that annoying disapproving expression when Steve mentions riding though. 

**Who does most of the cleaning?**

Steve. Steve is neat, borderline compulsively so. He makes the bed, cleans the bathroom, dusts. Steve even straightens the lab that Tony frequents, color coordinating, organizing by length, height, size. It’s only mildly irritating to Tony when he can’t find a particular item. He’s learned to look for things next to other things that look similar even though they may not be remotely similar compounds at all.  
Steve straightens the common area, he does dishes usually with the help of someone but he honestly doesn’t mind doing them himself. He’d rather that then watch them pile up. And just because Clint is tired of watching Steve fuss with the vacuum (one of Tony’s improved designs) Clint does all of the vacuuming, once a week if he’s not away. 

Tony will pick up a little here and there. Mostly he’ll ask why he’s no longer allowed a cleaning lady. He knows Pepper’s off the table but a cleaning lady should be allowed. Fury says he wants no civilians in Stark Tower if it is to officially be considered headquarters. Yep, Stark tower is officially populated by government and SHIELD agents and possibly their families. Tony pouts and then forgets and bothers everyone about the same issue a month later. 

If Natasha is around she doesn’t like to see Steve doing all of the work and she knows Steve will probably never say anything so she bugs Tony until he relents and helps Steve clean up the bedroom. Those days cleaning never goes as planned. And just for the record Tony has never seen Natasha so much as a hold a broom but it might be safer not to make the pot/kettle reference when she’s around. 

**What has a season pass in their DVR?**

Tony will watch nearly anything, except reality shows. He draws the line there with the exception of the food network and Ghost Adventures. Tony doesn’t cook but he could watch the food network all day. And Ghost Adventures, well that shit is just funny, even Clint and Natasha can appreciate that. One of his favorite shows, and he makes Steve watch this one too, is How it’s Made. It’s the only show Tony watches on the Science channel. 

They watch a lot of old television, when Tony realizes that Steve missed the whole decade where television became a regular thing. Tony introduces Star Trek to Steve one episode at a time. He does not let Steve watch Star Wars. Tony is a fan of Law and Order but Steve prefers the Alfred Hitchcock hour. They watch, Rear Window, Psycho, North by Northwest, Casablanca, Arsenic and Old Lace and of course The Wizard of Oz. Most of those nights end with Tony wrapped up in Steve’s arms. Steve will watch anything Tony likes as long as it’s not graphically violent. He’s seen enough of that in real life. He doesn’t need the reminder of all the ways people can die. Steve also enjoys sports any display of human physical strength, without the aid of some serum or enhancement, is worth watching. 

If the team is watching movies together they pretty much all agree on Disney. Steve grew up with Snow White but the rest of the Disney line up after that is new to him. Tony loves to watch Steve’s face when they watch a new Disney film. Steve seems particularly fond of the Lion King. Tony catches him humming ‘I just can’t wait to be King’ while washing up dishes so Tony keeps that one on the DVR. 

**Who leaves their stuff around?**

Tony. He keeps things everywhere, blueprints, notes, screws, electrical filament. If he’s been working on his cars he’ll even leave oil stains around. He’s not absent minded so much as easily distracted. Now Bruce is slightly absent minded and sometimes Tony gets blamed for test tubes or beakers of random liquids that don’t exactly look edible but that Thor will almost drink or spill. Tony then points out that Bruce works on the Biology and Chemistry side of things whereas Tony is strictly about physics and engineering. “There’s a difference guys. You can’t blame me for Thor’s near death experiences.” Not that a little thing like particulate suspension fluid would ever harm Thor. The guy could drink a tank of gasoline and survive. Steve doesn’t complain because  
Tony doesn’t do it often enough to warrant much complaining. It’s only when he’s deep in a project and it’s a miracle for him to even leave the lab that he leaves his stuff all over the place. If Steve wanted to nag he’s pretty sure Tony wouldn’t hear him anyway. Truth is, Tony notices Steve’s compulsively clean tendencies so he does his best to keep his mess to himself. 

**Who remembers to buy the milk?**

JARVIS. He takes stock of all the groceries and when they’re low he’ll take advantage of the online delivery order system. The groceries get dropped off at the tower and someone will sign for them, usually Clint or Natasha before a midmorning run. They’ll then be delivered straight to the house. If JARVIS didn’t Tony would end up eating out every night. Bruce might remember if he’s not in science mode he’ll go into cooking mode but that doesn’t last. Thor will remember if there are no pop-tarts. There was that one time he dragged Steve, of all people, to the grocery to buy some. They wandered the store for three hours. Thor ended up with a ridiculously full cart, none of the items in the cart were pop tarts. Then, they met the self-checkout. Mjolnir was somehow involved after that. Whole Foods still has Thor’s picture up. So yeah, JARVIS. 

**Who remembers anniversaries?**

Steve. He doesn’t remember particular dates off the top of his head but he does keep them on the calendar, which he always looks at. He used to plan romantic dinners but that didn’t work out well for them. There were missions and conferences, appearances, press and events that fell on first kiss, first dance, first date days. Not to mention Tony is late to everything but a fight if he can help it. Instead, if Steve knows it’s a special day and they have nothing else planned he’ll ask Tony to stay in bed, sometimes for the morning, sometimes for the weekend. Tony rarely says no.  
Tony doesn’t remember anniversaries. He remembers Steve’s face. He remembers the way Steve looks when he’s reading his favorite book or his expression when he sees or does something for the first time. If he likes it it’s like his eyes will widen to the point where Tony swears they’re sparkling. It’s all so child-like and adorable and nothing like the bitterness, panic and fear in his eyes when Tony first met him. 

If Cap _doesn’t_ like something that’s adorable too, Tony likes the way his nose scrunches up whenever Tony mentions sushi. Steve makes the same face when Tony kisses his cheek in public. Tony only does it because he knows Steve will respond like that.

Tony does remember the first time he told Steve he loved him. He doesn’t remember the date but he knows it was winter. He remembers because there was snow on the ground and Tony had taken Steve ice skating for the first and last time. Tony nearly cracked his skull when he fell in those skates and it was ridiculous because he was Iron Man and that just wasn’t a very cool way to go. He pointed that out to Steve as they sat in the lodge drinking cocoa at 2 a.m. “I know you want to but you can’t sleep, you have a concussion.” Steve kept repeating. 

They were quiet for a while; Steve had that faraway look in his eyes until Tony said it. Then there was that child-like light. To this day Tony swears Steve doesn’t count it because Tony was concussed and Tony never mentions it. But Tony remembers every detail of Steve’s reaction. Including the way he smiled down at his cocoa and the softness of his voice when he said “I love you, too.” Like he was scared but like he meant it. So yeah, Tony remembers those things.


End file.
